Coming off a non-conference schedule tougher than south Texas dirt, the Roadrunner volleyball team had to look at the opening of the conference schedule as a relief.

If anything, that rough non-conference schedule helped prepare the Roadrunners for a trip up I-35 to face the arch-rival Texas State Bobcats. The Roadrunners rode into San Marcos, and when the dust settled, they rode out of Strahan Coliseum with their first victory there in nine years.

“I did not tell them that we had not won there in a long time,” Head Coach Laura Groff said. “I told them to stay focused, have a great time and not let their fans get under your skin.”

The Roadrunners responded to their coach’s talk by taking the first set from the Bobcats with a score of 25-18.

In the second set, the Roadrunners jumped out to a 6-0 lead before the Bobcats rallied to tie it at 6. The Roadrunners answered by going on an 11-5 run that gave them a 17-11 lead en route to a 25-19 set victory.

To take the match, all the Roadrunners had to do was take the third set, which they did with a 25-16 victory.

It was the first sweep by the Roadrunners over the Bobcats in six years.

It was just the beginning of the weekend for the Roadrunners as they would be back on the road Saturday against the UT-Arlington Mavericks.

It was much of the same against the Mavericks as the Roadrunners took the first three sets to complete the sweep.

In the first set, the Roadrunners used a Maverick attack error to spark a 12-6 run that allowed the Roadrunners to defeat the Mavericks by a score of 25-14. The second set saw the Roadrunners lead wire-to-wire en route to a 25-21 victory over the Mavericks.

The Roadrunners completed their second sweep of the weekend with a third set victory, 25-19 over the Mavericks.

With the sweep of the Mavericks the Roadrunners moved to 8-8 on the season and 2-0 in Southland Conference play.

The 2-0 record means the Roadrunners sit in a good position to defend their conference crown while keeping open the possibility of a historic campaign.

“One of the goals is to go undefeated in conference,” Groff said. “We can’t look back, we can only get ready for the next match.”

The defense of the conference crown continues Thursday when the Sam Houston State Bearkats come to San Antonio to face the Birds. The match is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.